Apparatus for treating and transferring articles of hosiery,or other articles of apparel,from boarding forms onto a collecting surface

ABSTRACT

Apparatus for treating and transferring articles of apparel includes a rotating support means which carries a plurality of boarding forms that are vertically disposed for carrying such articles into and out of a treating chamber. After treatment, the articles are removed from the boarding forms and received onto a foraminous surface of a transferring means for being subsequently stacked or collected on a flat surface. The transfer means operates on an air pressure differential principle, and mechanisms are provided for coordinating the treating, removing, and transferring of each article. During transfer of the article, there is an automatic cooling of the article by a flow of air created by the transferring means.

United States Patent [191 Lakso'n 1451 Feb. 5, 1974 APPARATUS FORTREATING AND 3,477,558 11/1969 Fleischauern .f. 271 74 TRANSFERRINGARTICLES or HOSIERY,-

, 3 9 or ert, r. OR OTHER ARTICLES 0F APPAREL 3,333,748 8/ 1967 Herbert,Jr. 223/76 FROM BOARMNG FORMS ONTO A 3,054,542 7/1962 Glaze, Jr. et61.... 223/112 I COLLECTING SURFACE- 3,353,726 11/1967 Kronsbein 223 112Inventor: J- T. Paducah y 3,613,883 10/1967 Starbuck 271/74 [73]Assignee: Burlington Industries, Inc., Primary Examiner-Jordan FranklinGreensboro, NC. I Assistant Examiner-Peter Nerbun [22] File Oct 6 1971Attorney, Agent, 'or FirmCushman, Darby &

. Cushman [21] Appl. No.: 186,997

' Related US. Application Data [57] ABSTRACT [63] C0minuafion in part ofSer 90 001 Nov 1 6 Apparatus for treating and transferring articles ofap- 1970 abandoned parel includes a rotating support means which carriesa plurality of boarding forms that are vertically'dis- [52 US. Cl.223/112 PSed carrying articles into and Of a 51 Int. Cl. A47j 51/06 ingchamber- After treatment the articles are 5 Field of Search..." 223/11275 7 77 57 0 moved from the boarding forms and received 01110 a 223/43;34/103, 105; 2 14/1 Bv, 8; 271774; foraminous surface of a transferringmeans for being 'i g subsequently stacked or collected on a flatsurface.

' The transfer means operates on an air pressure differ- [56] ReferencesCited ential principle, and mechanisms are provided for coordinating thetreating, removing, and transferring of UNITED STATES PATENTS eacharticle. During transfer of the article, there is an 5 gs; ih l g2automatic cooling of the article by a flow of air cre- 3 494 482 2/197011: 1:22. 1:11.... 214/1 13v ated'by the transferringmeans' 9/1965Kronsbein 209/75 6 Claims, 11' Drawing Figures PAIENIEDFEB 519143.790.047

SHEEI 1 0f 9 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS PATENT) FEB 5 4 sum 2 OF 9 ((IlllllINVENTOR PAIENIED FEB 51974 SHEEI 3 0F 9 ATTORNEYS PAIENIEU W 3. 780.047

SHEEI h 0? 9 o H II 76 I l 7z I I INVENTOR ATTORNEYS PATENTED E 3,790.047

INVENTOR ATTORNEYS PATENTED B 3, 790.047

' sums 0r 9 1N VE NTOR ATTORNEYS PATENTED FEB 5 74 snmvnrg l a835333555: Kill v INVENTOR. I (I ZQQXSO/V ATTORNEYS PAIENIEMEB 5:91434.790 047 sum 8 0r 9 INVENTOR ATTORNEYfi' PAIENTED 3. 7 90.047

' sum 9 or 9 INVENTOR ATmRNEYg RELATED APPLICATIONS This application isa continuation-in-part of my copending application Ser. No. 90,001,filed Nov. 16, l970,'now abandoned and is related to subject matterdisclosed in U. S. Pat. No, 3,431,656.

BACKGROUND ANDBRIEF DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION This invention relates toimproved apparatus and ,method for treating and handling articles ofapparel,

and the invention is especially concerned with apparatus of a type whichtreats hosiery and which provides .for a removal and transfer of treatedhosiery from' boarding forms to a collection surface.

It is known in this art to provide for a heating or drying treatment ofhosiery with apparatus which includes a number of vertically orientedboarding forms over which the hosiery is placed during such treatment.Typically, the apparatus provides for an advancement of the boardingforms into and out of a treating chamber, and after the treatment, meansare provided for removing the hosiery from the boarding forms so thatthe hosiery may be further handled or collected. Certain forms of priorart apparatus require a manual handling of hosiery after it is removedfrom the boarding forms. Other forms of prior art apparatus provide formechanical means or devices for collecting or stacking hosiery after itis moved from the boarding forms.

The present invention is concerned with'an improved type of apparatusfor treating and handling articles of hosiery, or other articles ofapparel. In accordance with the invention, apparatus is provided with ahorizontally disposed support means for carrying a number of verticallyoriented boarding forms, or other article holding means, about acircular path so that hosiery which is fitted over the boarding formscan be advanced into and out of a treating zone. The horizontallydisposed supportmeans is rotated about a vertical axis in incrementalsteps of movements bya Geneva gear mechanism associated with its drivingmechanism. An article removing means is operatively associated with thesup port means so as to strip articles fromthe boarding forms after theyhave been treatedfTypically, the article removing means includes a pairof gripping members which can be pivoted into gripping engagement withan upper portion of an article carried on a boarding form so as to liftthe article away from the boarding form upon application of a liftingmovement to the gripping members. A specific improvement of the pres entinvention comprises a transferring means which is operatively associatedwith the remainder of the apparatus to receive articles after they havebeen removed from their respective boarding forms and to transfer sucharticles onto astack or other horizontally disposed collection surface.The collection surface may be in the form of a conveyor which functionsto move the collected articles away from the apparatus. The transferringmeans utilizes an air pressure differential across a foraminous surfacethereon to draw one article at a time onto the transferring means afterthe article is removed from its respective boarding form. In a specificembodiment of the invention, the transferring means comprises a hollowarm structure which carries the foraminous surface for receiving andholding articles while they are being transferred, and the arm structureis pivotable from a generally vertically disposed position, at which itreceives an article, to generally horizontally disposed position, atwhich it releases an article for collection. The transferring meanseliminates any requirement for manual handling or stacking of individualarticles after they are treated, and yet, a very safe and gentle meansis provided for automatically transferring the articles from theapparatus to a collection surface. The arrangement is relatively simple,easily maintained, and reliable in its operation, thereby overcomingmany-of the problems associated with devices of this type in prior artapparatus.

In the context of this specification and its claims, reference will bemade to hosiery articles for convenience of discussion. However, it isto be understood that the use of the term hosiery is intended todescribe socks and half hose, although the apparatus is also suitablefor ladies hosiery and other forms of wearing apparel,

such as sweaters, which are fitted over forms or frames ticle strippingmechanism associated with the apparafor treatment. Also, thespecification and claims will refer to boarding forms as typically usedfor carrying hose on a machine of the type contemplated, but it shouldbe understood that other types of forms and frames may be substitutedforthe boarding forms which will be described and illustrated. Referencewill be made toheating or drying treatments for hosiery, and thesetreatments are well understood by those skilled in this art. In somecases, previously fabricated articles of hosiery are dried in a dryingzone, while in other cases, the treatment involves an application ofheat to the hosiery article to set the material from which it is knittedand to fix its shape in accordance with the configuration of a form uponwhich it is carried. Other forms of treatment may be substituted for thedrying and heating treatments which will be discussed.

Cooling of an article is providedby the novel transferring means of thisinvention so that a previously heated article is cooled to a preferredtemperature prior to stacking or collection.

' These and other features and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent in the more de-' tailed discussion which follows. In thedetailed discussion reference will be made to accompanying drawings,

as briefly described below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the generalorganization of structures associated with the apparatus of the pres.ent invention; I

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the type of apparatus shown in FIG. 1 onan enlarged scale from what is shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the apparatus of FIGS. 1 and 2,shown on a scale approximately the same as used in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an end elevational view, on an enlarged scale, of a portion ofthe apparatus of FIG. 3 as it would appear when viewed generally fromthe left-hand side of FIG. 3',

FIG. 5 is a greatly enlarged perspective view of an artus of thisinvention;

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view, in enlarged scale, of an articletransferring mechanism associated with the apparatus of this invention;7

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view ofa portion of an actuating mechanismfor the transferring mechanism of FIG. 6, as seen generally from line7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view, showing the back side of the transferringmechanism illustrated in FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a partially sectional view of a base portion of thetransferring mechanism shown in FIGS. 6 8;

FIG. 10 is a diagrammatic showing of relationships of driving systemsassociated with the apparatus of this invention; and

FIG. 11 is a detailed representation of the Geneva gear portion of thesystems shown in FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION General Relationships and OperationFIGS. 1 3 illustrate general relationships of structures associated witha type of apparatus which carries half-hose on boarding forms fortreatment and subsequent removal and stacking. This type of apparatuswill be discussed in detail as an example of working embodiment of thepresent invention.

As shown, the basic apparatus includes a horizontally disposed supportmeans 10, in the form of a table-like frame, for carrying a number ofvertically oriented boarding forms 12 of known construction. In theillustrated embodiment, twelve boarding forms 12 are mounted in equallyspaced positions about a circular circumference of the support means 10.Any suitable fastening or securing arrangement may be utilized forsecuring a lower end of each boarding form to the support means 10. Theboarding forms-12 which are illustrated are of the type upon whichhalf-hose can be placed in inverted positions for being treated in atreating section 14 of the apparatus. The half-hose are placed over theshaped forms and advanced into the treating chamber'l4 by a rotation ofthe support means 10 about a vertical axis at its center point 16. Thetreating chamber 14 may comprise a heating chamber in which steam orother hot fluid is circulated, or it may comprise a drying chamber fordrying previously treated hose. As generally indicated in'FIGS. l and 3,a driving means is provided for rotating the support means 10 and foractuating associated mechanisms of the overall apparatus. This drivingmeans will be discussed in greater detail with reference to otherdrawlngs. 4

With the arrangement shown in FIGS. 1 3, an operator standing adjacentan open side of the apparatus can place half-hose over the boardingforms 12 as they I advance past the operators position which is labelledin FIG. 1. The untreated hose may be carried in a trough area 17 locatedat the front of the machine, and the operator simply picks out a singlearticle at a time and places it over a boarding form 12 as the boardingform advances past him and towards the treating chamber 14. With thehose in place, the boarding form is rotated into the chamber 14 andcontinues around within the circumference of the chamber until it exitsthrough an opening 18 of the treating chamber. At this point, thetreated half-hose is stripped from its boarding form byan articleremoving means in the form of a stripping mechanism generally indicatedat 20. After stripping, the hose is received by a transferring means 22for being transferred onto a receiving surface 24. The receiving surface24 may be in the form of a table or conveyor, and the treated hose maybe stacked on the receiving surface or placed one at a time on a movingconveyor surface. FIG. 1 illustrates a rotating table type of conveyor24 for receiving the hose which have been treated and removed from theirboarding forms, but other types of receiving surfaces or conveyors maybe utilized for this purpose.

The entry and exit openings of the chamber 14 may be provided withflexible gate seals or other closure means if desired. In addition,photoelectric cells 25, or other detectors, may be positioned as shownin FIG. 1 to detect the removal of a hose from a boarding form foractuating a control circuit (not shown) which is associated with'a knownindexing mechanism for the type of receiving surface 24 shown in FIG. 1.

ARTICLE REMOVING MEANS The article removing means 20 which functions tostrip articles from the boarding forms after they have been treated isillustrated in greater detail in FIGS. 3 5. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4,the article removing means includes a fixed-position track or guide arm26 which is secured to a portion of the housing associated with thetreating chamber 14 of the apparatus. A carriage 28 embraces theinclined guide arm 26 and is provided with rollers 30 on its top, bottomand sides so that the carriage 28 can be reciprocated in rolling contactback and forth along the guide arm 26 with an actuating mechanism whichincludes a rod 32. The carriage 28 carries a pair of gripping members 34for engaging and removing hose from the boarding forms 12 as theyadvance beneath the article removing means 20. As

each boarding form leaves the treating chamber 14, it advances to aposition directly beneath the lowermost position for the carriage means28 and its associated gripping members 34 relative to the guide arm 26.This lowermost position of the carriage is shown in FIG. 3. Then, as theboarding form advances between the open gripping members 34, thegripping members are actuate d towards one another to engage the footportion of the hose 36 so that the hose can be lifted clear of theboarding form by an upward movement of the carriage 20 along theinclined guide arm 26. Means for effecting engagement of the grippingmembers 34 and reciprocating movements of the carriage 28 will bediscussed in greater detail later.

FIG. 3 also illustrates an upper limit position for the carriage 28 andits associated gripping members 34 (as shown by the phantom lines). Inthe upper limit position, a removed hose whichis still gripped by thegripping members 34 is moved adjacent a vertically oriented transferringmeans 22. Thevertically oriented transferring means 22 includes aforarriinous surface 38 for receiving a hose from the gripping members34, and a pneumatic system 40 is provided for establishing a pressuredifferential across the surface of the foraminous surface 38. Thiscauses a hose to be drawn against the flat surface 38 so as to beretained thereon as the gripping members 34 are disengaged fromtheir'gripping contact with the foot of the hose. The transferring meansis arranged so that the foraminous surface 38, which receives a hose,can be pivoted about an axis 42 to a generally horizontally disposedposition for transferring the hose article onto a receiving surface,such as the conveyor surface 24 illustrated in FIG. 1. In theillustrated embodiment, the transferring means 22 includes a hollow armportion which is pivotal between vertical and horizontal positions, andthe hollow arm is provided with a foraminous surface which is generallyof the outline shape of the hose to be received thereon. The entirehollow arm is reciprocated back and forth between its two limitpositions by a mechanism which will be discussed in greater detaillater.

GRIPPING MECHANISM OF ARTICLE REMOVING MEANS FIG. 5 illustrates detailsof construction of a gripping mechanism associated with the articleremoving means 20. The gripping mechanism functions to strip hose fromboarding forms as the boarding forms are advanced around thecircumference of the apparatus of this invention.

As previously discussed, a pair of gripping members '34 are carried by acarriage 28 which can be guided back and forth along the length of aninclined guide arm member 26. Thegripping members 34 comprise a pair ofelongate metal structures which are shaped to embrace opposite sides oftheupper foot portion of a hose carried on a boarding form 12. Thegripping members 34 are preferably covered and padded with a fabric orother soft material so that there is a gentle gripping contact of thegripping members with the hose. As shown, each of the ends of thegripping members 34 are carried by a pair of support brackets 44, andthe support brackets 44 of each pair are arranged to be pivioted towardsand away from each other about an axis taken through the center of amounting hub 45. Thus,

a single pair of mounting brackets 44 can be pivoted in scissors-likefashion to bring together or spread apart an associated pair of grippingmembers 34. Actuation of the mounting brackets is accomplished by aircylinder means 46 associated with each pair of pivoting brackets, andair is supplied to the air cylinders 46 by way of conduits 48 from asuitable source of compressed air. The air cylinder means 46 are of aknown construction which provides for positive displacement of a pistonback and forth within a cylinder to effect movement of a connectingfrodsecured to one end of g the piston. Air for actuation of the aircylinders may be tapped from an air or blowersystem associated with thetreating chamber 14, if desired. Each of the mounting hubs is mounted ona support Shaft 50 which extends transversely outwardly from thecarriage 28. The mounting hubs 45 are of'a known design for permittingrelative pivotal movement of one mounting-bracket 44 relative to theother mounting bracket of a given pair. Either or both of the mountingbrackets 44 of a given pair may be moved relative to the other.

The carriage 28 may be of any suitable design and constructionvforrolling along the inclined guide arm 26. In the illustrated embodimentof FIG. 5, the sides of the carriage are formed by a pair of flat platesassembled in parallel spaced relationship to one another with a numberof rollers 30 mounted therebetween for rolling along the top and bottomsurfaces of the guide arm 26. In'addition, top and bottom plate members54 may be secured to the assembly for supporting side rollers 30 whichmaintain a rolling engagement with the side surfaces of the guide arm26. As the carriage 28 is moved up and down the guide arm 26, itsassociated gripping members 34 are carried along therewith along oneside of the guide arm 26. Referring back to FIG. 4, it can be seen thatthe gripping members 34 are positioned to receive a boarding form andhose therebetween as the'boardingform leaves the exit 18 of the treatingchamber. Actuation of the air cylinder 46 moves the gripping members 34into gripping engagement with opposite sides of the foot portion of ahose, and subsequent movement of thetentire article removing means 20upwardly along the guide arm 26 causes a removal and separation of thehose from the boarding form. A gripping engagement is maintained on thehose, even after it is removed from the boarding member upon which it isoriginally carried. Gripping engagement is continued until the entirearticle removing means has been advanced to a point immediately adjacentto the foraminous screen 38 of the transferring means 22. Then, the aircylinders 46 are positively actuated to open the gripping members 34 andto release the hose onto the foraminous surface 38 of the transferringmeans 22.

ARTICLE TRANSFERRING MEANS FIGS. 6 through 9 illustrate details-ofconstruction and operation of the transferring means 22 which has beenmentioned briefly above.

The transferring means.22 functions to receive a hose, or other article,which has beenreleased from the stripping mechanism previously discussedand to transfer the hose onto a flat horizontal surface. This operationeliminates costly manual assistance that is otherwise required forreceiving and collecting individual hose which have been removed fromthe boarding forms after being treated. Also, the specific transferringmeans of the present invention provides for a safe and gentle mechanismfor placing hose onto a flat collection surface from where the hose canbe further treated, inspected or packaged. The type of transferringmeans described herein serves to move hose from a vertical orientationat which it is released from the stripping mechanism of the apparatus toa completely horizontal orientation which allows for a stacking orone-by-one placement of individual hose onto a conveyor or otherreceiving surface. The transferring means may also function to cool apreviously heated article while it is being transferred from a hotboarding form to. a receiving surface. I I

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7,- the transferring means includes a hollowarm structure which is pivoted at.

its base for movement between a vertical orientation (as shown in FIG.6) to a horizontal orientation (as shown in FIG. 8). The hollow arm 60is mounted on a base plate 61 which, in turn, is carried by a supportpost 63 secured to a fixed part of the apparatus. The hollow arm 60 isof an outline shape which generally corresponds to the shape of. thearticle to be received and transferred, and in the illustratedembodiment, the shape is that of a half-hose with its foot portiondirected upwardly. The hollow arm 60 is provided with a foraminousscreen surface 38 for contacting and holding a single hose article at atime. The hollow arm is closed in on all sides except the side uponwhich the foraminous surface 38 is positioned, and a hollow chamber areais in the lower portion of the hollow arm. This area of control isimportant because it permits a given hollow arm structure to be adjustedfor use with a range of hose lengths. As shown, the baffle plate 62 isprovided with openings 64 so that a vacuum may be drawn through thebaffle plate and on the foraminous surface 38 by a pneumatic systemwhich communicates with the base portion of the hollow arm structure.The openings 64 are provided with closures 66 which can be moved topartially, or totally, open or close their asso ciated openings 64. Byadjusting the closures 66, the degree of suction can be varied along thelower length of the foraminous surface 38. For example, if a short hoselength is being handled the lower opening 64 may be closed offcompletely and the upper opening adjusted to a desired degree ofsuction, as illustrated. Although only two openings 64 are illustratedas being provided with closure structures, any additional number of suchopenings and closures may be provided, as desired. 4

In addition to the baffle plate 62,. a separate baffle 'strip 68 may beprovided along a marginal portion of the hollow arm 60 for directing airflow from desired surface areas of the foraminous surface 38.Alternatively, baffle members may be eliminated entirely if noadjustment of air flow is required in a given operation.

The foraminous surface 38 may comprise a metal screen, such as aluminumscreen, which is grounded to a part of the apparatus to remove staticelectricity that may develop on it. Alternatively, the screen can becoated with an anti-static composition or can be formed from a materialwhich reduces or eliminates static charge.

The pneumatic system which provides for a suction on the foraminoussurface 38 includes a conventional blower unit, as illustrated at 40 inFIG. 2. The conduit 70 interconnects the negative pressure side of theblower with the transferring means 22, and communication is made withthe transferring means through a cylindrical base portion, as shown inFIG. 9. A solenoid 72 of known structure and function operates to openand close a flapper valve 74 hinged to an upper terminal open end of theconduit 70. By closing the flapper valve 74 over the upper'end of theconduit 70, air is drawn through the foraminous surface38 of thetransferring means and downwardly into a cylindrical base portion 76 andinto the conduit 70. When the valve 74 is opened, suction issubstantially reduced, or even eliminated, on the foraminous surface 38because a major portion of the air supply to the blower is drawn throughthe upper open end 78 of the conduit 70. Thus, by controlling thesolenoid 72, the degree of air pres sure differential on the. foraminoussurface 38 can be controlled.

In fact, it has been found that the air pressure differential which isestablished on the foraminous surface 38 can be controlled to provide arush of air through a previously heated article being transferred so asto cool the article prior to stacking. In a typical hosiery treatingoperation, individual articles are heated while boarded, and theboarding forms do not cool appreciably prior to stripping of the articletherefrom. If a hosiery article is stacked in a hot condition there is arisk of objectionable shrinkage during its ultimate cooling in thestack. On the other hand, if the article is cooled prior to stacking,objectionable shrinkage is prevented. The transferring means of theinvention provides for automatic cooling by its creation of an air flowthrough the article during the transferring of the article to a stack orother receiving surface.

In actual operation, the blower unit of the pneumatic system can beoperated continuously, and the flapper valve 74 is actuated betweenclosed and opened positions to provide for a pick-up or release ofa hoseon the foraminous surface 38. When a hose is to be received from thegripping members of the article removing means 20, the flapper valve 74is closed, and an air pressure differential is established across theforaminous surface 38. When the hose is to be released, the flappervalve is moved to an open position, and the air pressure differential isthereby reduced by a sufficient amount to release the hose from theforaminous surface 38.

Since air is drawn into the open end of the conduit when the flapper.valve is open, a shield 75 is positioned between the end of the conduitand the hollow arm 60 to prevent an unwanted drawing of a hose into theopen end of the conduit. The shield '75 is illustrated as being anupright sheet structure, but other forms of shielding devices could beused.

At the same time that the pneumatic system is being controlled to pickup and release a hose from the foraminous surface 38 of the transferringmeans, the hollow arm 60 is moved from its vertical orientation of FIG.6 to its horizontal orientation of FIG. 8. The hollow arm 60 receives ahose while in its vertical orientation and maintains the hose inposition on its foraminous surface until the arrn has been pivoted tothe horizontal position of FIG. 8. At that point, the pressuredifferential on theforaminous surface is reduced or released so that thehose can be released by its own weightonto a receiving surface 24.-

Any suitable arrangement may be provided for pivoting the hollow armstructure 60 between its vertical and horizontal orientations and fortiming such movements means the release of a 'hose from the articleremoving meahs 20. However, FIGS. 6 through 9 show a working embodimentof a mechanism for pivoting the hollow arm structure. As shown in FIG.9, the cylindrical base portion 76 of the hollow arm 60 comprises acylindrical sleeve which is mounted for rotation within a pair ofannular bearing members 80. The annular bearing members 80 are affixedto the base plate 61 of the transferring means. Ball or roller bearingsmay be provided where desired to permit a free movement of the hollowarm 60 about a horizontal axis 42 taken through the center of its basesleeve 76. The sleeve 76 may be provided with a larger diameter endsleeve 82 for forminga sealed relationship with a non-rotating circularduct 84 communicating with the main conduit 70. With this arrangementthe hollow arm structure 60 can be pivoted about its base withoutinterrupting the flow of ari through its foraminous screen and into theconduit 70 communicating with the blower unit of the overall pneumaticsystem.

The hollow arm 60 is moved by a lever arm means 86 fixed to a closed endportion 88 of the cylindrical base portion 76. The lever arm 86 isactuated by a push rod means 90 which is controlled by devices whichwill be discussed with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. Referring to FIG.7, it can be seen that an upward movement of the push rod means 90 willcause the lever arm 86 to move the hollow arm structure 60 in acounterclockwise direction. This movement causes the hollow arm 9 60 tomove from its vertical limit position towards its horizontal limitposition. The hollow arm structure is returned to its vertical limitposition by a tension spring 92 secured to a free end of the lever arm86. A lower end of the spring means 92 is secured to a fixed portion Iof the apparatus or to the mounting post 63 so as to maintain asufficient tension on the spring to cause the hollow arm structure 60 tobe lifted into a vertical position when no upward force is applied tothe push rod 90. FIG. 8 shows a swivel block assemby 94 as anintermediate structure in a linkage which actuates the push rod 90 witha separate push rod means 96.

DRIVING AND TIMING MECHANISMS post 130.

As shown in FIG. 10,-the other end of the drive shaft 106 enters a gearreduction box 132 which has an output shaft 134- going into a secondgear reduction box' 136. An output shaft 138 from the second gearreduction box actuates a series of cams and levers associated with theoperation of both the article removing means 20 and the transferringmeans 22. A first cam 140 is secured to the output shaft 138 forrotation therewith for actuating a micro switch 142 which operates avalve that controls the flow of air to air cylinders 46 of the articleremoving means 20. An actuation of the micro switch 142 dictates an airflow which determines whether the gripping members 34 are in opened orclosed positions relative to a hose. Thus, the cam 140 times the openingand closing of the gripping members shaft 106. The drive shaft 106 has'apower take off at one end for rotating the support means in incrementalsteps of movement about a vertical axis, together with a separate powertake off at its opposite end for driving the article removing means andthe transferring means 22 in timed relationship.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the drive shaft 106 enters a gear reductionbox and transmission 108 for translating the rotational movement of thedrive shaft means 106 from a horizontal axis to a vertical axis so thata large cam .110 is rotated in the direction indicated by the arrowappearing thereon. Rotation of the large cam 110 carries with it arotation of a drive lever 112 which is fixed to the cam 110. The drivelever 112 carries a roller or other bearing means 114 at its free endfor periodically engaging successive drive slots 116 provided ina'Geneva gear mechanism of known construction and operation, Thus, asthe cam 110 and its associated drive arm 112 continue to rotate, thedrive arm periodically engages one of the slots 1.16 of the Geneva gearto rotate the same in the direction indicated by-the"arrow. This rotatesan upright shaft 118 upon which the support means 10 is secured. Thus,the support-means 10 is rotated for an incremental distance whichcorresponds to the period of time in which the drive arm 112 is inengagement with a slot 116. As the drive arm 112 continues to rotate, itis removed from driving contact with the Geneva gear, and the supportmeans 10 stands still until the drive arm 112 makes a completerevolution and re-engages a successive slot 116 of the Geneva gear. 1

.The large cam 110 functions to actuate a locking means 120 whichperiodically engages and locks the Geneva gear from further rotationduring the period in which the drive arm 112 is out of drivingengagement with a slot 116. This is to prevent any unwanted oraccidental rotation of the'support means 10 during the time when it isnot being positively rotated. The locking means 120 comprises an armmember 122 which carries a projecting element 124 for being receivedinto smaller slots 126 formed between the larger slots 116 of the Genevagear mechanism (see FIG. 11). The arm 120 is spring urged in a lockingdirection towards the circumference of the Geneva gear and is taken outof engagement by the profile of the large cam 110 acting 34 as a hoseisengaged and removed from a boarding form for being received by thetransferring means 22. A second cam 144 operates a second micro switch146 for operating the solenoid 72 of the flapper-valve 74 associatedwith the pneumatic system of the transferring means 22. Thus, the cam144 and its micro switch 146 dictate a cycle of suction applied to theforaminous surface 38 of the transferring means 22, and this cycle isset in timed relationship to the time at which a hose will be deliveredin close proximity to the 'transferring' means 22 by the articleremoving means 20. A third cam 148 is affixed to the output shaft 138fordictating rocking movements to a lever arm l50 through a follower152. The lever arm 150 rocks about a pivot at 154, and this moves thepush rod 96 and the push rod through assembly 94. I

A last cam 156 controls rocking movements of a lever arm 158 about itsfixed pivot 160. A rod element 162 is carried around with the cam 156and slides back and forth along a slot 164 formed in the lever arm 158This rocking movement moves the rod 32 back and forth to cause thearticle removing means 20 to move between its upper and lower limitpositions along the guide arm 26. A spring means 166 may be provided formaintaining a tension on the lever 158.

It can be seen that the driving mechanisms just dis- 7 cussed'providefor a, timed relationship, and adjustment .Of such relationship, of allmajor components of the entire apparatus. This assures that a hose willbe gripped, lifted, released onto the foraminous surface of atransferring means, and delivered into a flat horizontal position on areceiving surface without any manual assistance and without any damageto the hose. Vacuum is applied to the transferring means at preciselythe right time for drawing a hose onto the foraminous surface 38 just asthe hose is being released by the gripping members 34, and the vacuum isreleased when the transferring means has been moved down to itshorizontal limit position for delivering the hose onto a conveyor orother receiving surface. a t

Thus, there is provided a very useful arrangement with novel means forhandlinga hose after it has been treated and. removed from a boardingform.

In accordance with the method of this invention, an

article is placed on a boarding form, treated (including.

a step of heat treatment in certain operations), automatically strippedfrom the form, and automatically transferred to a stack orcollectingsurface by a pneu- 1 l matic transferring means. The pneumatictransferring means further provides for a cooling of the article duringthe time interval it is being transferred from the boarding form to thestack or collecting surface. Cooling is effected by a flow of air pulledthrough the article by the pneumatic means associated with thetransferring means.

What is claimed is: 1. Apparatus for treating and transferring articlesof hosiery, or other articles of apparel, comprising a horizontallydisposed support means mounted for rotation about a vertical axis forcarrying a number of vertically oriented boarding forms, or other framemeans, upon which said articles can be placed for being treated, drivingmeans for rotating said support means so as to advance said boardingforms around a generally circular path, said driving means being ofatype for advancing said boarding forms in incremental steps of movement,means along said path for treating said articles including theapplication of heat thereto, article removing means operativelyassociated with said support means for gripping and removing articlesfrom said boarding forms after they have been treated and for carryingthe articles to a higher relative position, transferring means adjacentto said removing means when said removing means has reached said higherrelative position and operatively associated with said removing meansfor transferring the removed articles to a stack or collecting surface,said transferring means including a flat foraminous articleholdingsurface substantially coextensive with the flattened article and apneumatic system which is controlled (a) to establish a pressuredifferential across said foraminous surface so as to receive and hold anarticle on said surface after the article is removed from a boardingform and to cool the article by passage ofa gas therethrough, and (b) toreduce said pressure differential sufficiently to release the articlefrom said transferring means onto a stack or collecting surface meanspivotally mounting said transferring means for moving between an uprightposition in which it receives an article being transferred and agenerally horizontally disposed position in which it releases an articleonto a stack or other collecting surface, and

means correlating the operation of said driving means, article removingmeans and transferring means for automatically successively advancingarticles on said forms past said treating and heating means, strippingthe heated articles from said boarding forms, transferring the strippedheated articles to the collecting surface, and cooling the heatedarticles during transfer.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said driving means includes a Genevagear system for effecting incremental rotation of said support means.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said article removing means includesa pair of gripping members which can be pivoted into gripping engagementwith an article while the article is on a boarding form, and includingmeans for lifting the pair of gripping members,

and an article gripped therebetween, away from the boarding form so asto remove the article from the boarding form.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said transferring means ispositioned so as to immediately receive'an article after it has beenlifted clear of a boarding form and before it has been released fromsaid pair of gripping members.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said transferring means includes ahollow arm member connected to the pneumatic system and carrying theforaminous surface, said foraminous surface being in communication withthe hollow interior of said arm member.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said arm member is positioned in itsupright position so as to immediately receive an article which has beenlifted clear of a boarding form by gripping means associated with saidarticle removing means.

1. Apparatus for treating and transferring articles of hosiery, or otherarticles of apparel, comprising a horizontally disposed support meansmounted for rotation about a vertical axis for carrying a number ofvertically oriented boarding forms, or other frame means, upon whichsaid articles can be placed for being treated, driving means forrotating said support means so as to advance said boarding forms arounda generally circular path, said driving means being of a type foradvancing said boarding forms in incremental steps of movement, meansalong said path for treating said articles including the application ofheat thereto, article removing means operatively associated with saidsupport means for gripping and removing articles from said boardingforms after they have been treated and for carrying the articles to ahigher relative position, transferring means adjacent to said removingmeans when said removing means has reached said higher relative positionand operatively associated with said removing means for transferring theremoved articles to a stack or collecting surface, said transferringmeans including a flat foraminous article-holding surface substantiallycoextensive with the flattened article and a pneumatic system which iscontrolled (a) to establish a pressure differential across saidforaminous surface so as to receive and hold an article on said surfaceafter the article is removed from a boarding form and to cool thearticle by passage of a gas therethrough, and (b) to reduce saidpressure differential sufficiently to release the article from saidtransferring means onto a stack or collecting surface means pivotallymounting said transferring means for moving between an upright positionin which it receives an article being transferred and a generallyhorizontally disposed position in which it releases an article onto astack or other collecting surface, and means correlating the operationof said driving means, article removing means and transferring means forautomatically successively advancing articles on said forms past saidtreating and heating means, stripping the heated articles from saidboarding forms, transferring the stripped heated articles to thecollecting surface, and cooling the heated articles during transfer. 2.The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said driving means includes a Genevagear system for effecting incremental rotation of said support means. 3.The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said article removing means includes apair of gripping members which can be pivoted into gripping engagementwith an article while the article is on a boarding form, and includingmeans for lifting the pair of gripping members, and an article grippedtherebetween, away from the boarding form so as to remove the articlefrom the boarding form.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein saidtransferring means is positioned so as to immediately receive an articleafter it has been lifted clear of a boarding form and before it has beenreleased from said pair of gripping members.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1wherein said transferring means includes a hollow arm member connectedto the pneumatic system and carrying the foraminous surface, saidforaminous surface being in communication with the hollow interior ofsaid arm member.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said arm member ispositioned in its upright position so as to immediately receive anarticle which has been lifted clear of a boarding form by gripping meansassociated with said article removing means.